SELECTING AND MANAGING THE BREEDING BIRDS. 97 



head and covering her eyes is often resorted to for the 

 first few times, and with success. Another good plan 

 is, to take the cock away for a short time to a strange 

 camp. This tames him a little, and when taken back 

 he is generally all right. But on no account ever 

 take the hen to the cocks^ camp. 



In choosing the birds you will, of course, be largely 

 influenced by the quality of the feathers. It has been 

 the fashion to run entirely after white-feathered hens, 

 with not half enough regard as to the quality of the 

 feather in other respects. Dark hens' featliers of good 

 breadth, softness, closeness and droop are worth far 

 more than indifferent hens' feathers that are white. 

 The dark hen will transmit her good qualities to her 

 cock progeny, and benefit the future pluckings far 

 more than would the whiteness of the light hen's 

 feathers, if inferior in other respects. 



The birds should also be selected for coming from 

 a good breeding strain. They should have a well- 

 developed, muscular frame, large feet, thick, powerful- 

 looking legs, with great depth of girth, and a prominent, 

 bold eye. On no account have anything to do with a 

 herring-gutted, flyaway-looking bird. 



The body feathers should be curly, rich in colourj 

 with a shiny gloss on them ; and the birds, if in good 

 condition, should be broad across the back, with a slight 



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